Top first/I like Don Zimmer, but I think he’s blowing some smoke when he says Evan Longoria is as good a third baseman as he’s ever seen. Zim, say hello to Brooks Robinson. Say hello to Mike Schmidt. Say hello to Graig Nettles.-JD

3- According to Mc Carver……Don Zimmer is qualified to make that judgement because he was the first ever third baseman for the NY Mets……….I’m sorry….but what a tool…..I can’t believe we gotta listen to this guy for the rest of the WS

pvhornet05 (7): Shines and Manuel were with the Expos in the 1980s, but were never teammates on the big league level. Shines managed the Phillies’ Class A Clearwater affiliate in the Florida State League last year. His record was 64-76.-JD

Bottom second/How hard can this be to figure out by Buck and McCarver. It looked to me the ump caught himself in the middle of his call and pointed to first, as in “runner take your base.” It’s not all that hard. C’mon guys, put a lid on it and move on.-JD

JD – A little while ago you mentioned that you thought the Mets should pick up Baldelli. I wasn’t aware of his illness when you said this, would it be worth it for the Mets if he wasn’t going to play much. He doesn’t really sound like a solution to LF.

of course most of us Met fans don’t know much about Baldelli ( unless we cheat and watch the evil empire broadcasts) Please do tell. Is he likely to last the season……or is he gonna be another Alou? We need someone reliable. And if he’s viable…….what do we do with Murphy?

chucky (30): First of all, Baldelli is a pipe dream of mine. He’s 26 and I believe the Rays will re-sign him. … This was an illness, not an injury. He’s struggled to get back and he’s not 100 percent. With medication he should be getting better. … He’s worth the risk.-JD

chucky (34): Feel free to bust away. Castillo’s contract is a pain in the ass. I would first try to trade him, but realistically, who wants him? Too expensive. Too injured. Too bad. … I figure the Wilpons won’t eat the contract. So, if he’s not good enough to beat out Murphy at second, he becomes a highly paid backup. I wouldn’t play him just to play him if he’s bad. … Castillo was just one bad decision.-JD

36…….yeah I realize I’m in the minority here……..but I really couldn’t understand the decision to renew Minaya’s contract (especially with a year left) with some of the really bad decisions he made. To me…it was extremely frustrating that they did that. I hope they can flip Castillo for a relief pitcher at least, even if we have to pay most of his contract.

with all this talk of obtaining OF’s….I think it’s important to refocus on the Met’s obtaining pitchers………starters are nice…….but particularly….relievers…..if the playoff series has taught us anything….that is where we are most deficient.Our bullpen is so woefully inadequate that if I were Omar and Wilpon told me I could only obtain one player this off season……it would be a relieve.r

Thanks for the news – I hadn’t heard about it, but I hope the TWS guy will do a good job. Are you insinuating that the ‘locals’ are going to give him a hard time?? If so, why is there some history here?

What does everyone think? is it possible Castillo has a Delgado type resurgence? (not power wise of course) or is he done? I recall most Met’s fans wanted Delgado gone until he caught fire later in the season. Now many advocate exercising his option.

One of my pet peeves with sports talk radio is the way both hosts and callers talk about clutch hitting. They pretty much exclusively talk about 7th inning onwards. But haven’t the first two games of the World Series shown the importance of getting a lead early? Shouldn’t that be considered as “clutch” every bit as much as the last third of the game?

The less said about the egg the Islanders laid tonight at the Coliseum in front of me and 4,000 other people, the better. Nice to see the Islanders have the opening puck dropped by a woman who survived three bouts of breast cancer. Hopefully she is cured for good.

Hi Annie (45):
My reference to Triple Word Score (a Scrabble term) & the media is because his last name is difficult to spell. If I were a journalist, I’d rather be covering people named Bill Smith than Jack Zduriencik. It would probably take me five years to memorize the spelling of his surname.

Am I alone in thinking “God Bless America” during the 7th inning stretch changes the ethos of the game-viewing experience? I always appreciated sports for — amongst other reasons — the escape it provides from every day life. “Take Me Out To The Ballgame” is fun; “God Bless America” makes me feel solemn.

Is the Gerbil still going to tell us how Longoria is as good a third basenan as he’s ever seen? The second most depressing thing about the Yankee dynasty run a decade ago was seeing Zimmer become a folk hero with two books.

One thing I got to thinking was people talking about how Tampa has a limited window with arbitration, free agency, same division as Red Sox and Highlanders. But even if they had money, wouldn’t they face a tough road? Two years ago the Detroit Tigers lost but looked loaded and have an owner that will spend money (as he does in the NHL). They added Sheffield, Cabrera and Willis to the mix. But they haven’t made the playoffs in two years and in 2008 finished last behind the Royals. Conclusion: Be like George Washington Plunkett and take your opportunities when you see them.

61…….some of the guys that fight for us…..whether you think it necessary or not come back in wooden boxes or with limbs missing….if taking two minutes out of your life to listen to God Bless America annoys you………….too bad.

John: they should be but you never know. I thought after 1969 and 1986 the Mets were set for a 7 year run of championship contending teams. Didn’t happen. Bill James once noted (in his Abstract on the 1991 Braves) the 1914 Braves, 1946 Red Sox and 1961 Reds all came out of nowhere to win with young teams but failed to follow it up. But you are right in that Rays management is making the right moves. But life has a funny way of upsetting even well-thought out moves.

My point was that sports — and the familiar traditions — are forms of escapism for many of us.

I’d prefer to hear “Take Me Out To the Ballgame” during the 7th inning stretch and hear the national anthem and/or “God Bless America” before or after the game. IOW, my comment was not about the song, but rather, the timing of it.

It’s a petty point to me, but it obviously has a visceral impact on at least one person. Therefore, I’ll be sure to refrain from addressing such topics in the future.